Former Milwaukee County Sheriff David Clarke has indicted the Congressional Black Caucus as being a major reason black Americans have not achieved success.

“The CBC has been appointed gatekeepers by the liberal white establishment to keep blacks tethered to the plantation of liberal ideology and to go after anyone who dare escape,” Clarke wrote in an op-ed on TownHall.

Clarke, a senior adviser for America First Action, said that the CBC’s opposition to school choice efforts championed by Education Secretary Betsy DeVos is typical of the bad policies pushed by the liberal Democrat caucus.

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“Education is the vehicle to upward mobility for black people trapped in dysfunctional urban centers with high poverty rates, high infant mortality, high unemployment, and high crime involvement that results in high incarceration rates,” he wrote. “After all, an educated black student is less likely to be involved in gangs and criminal activity.

“That’s something you’d never hear a liberal CBC member admit, but having spent my life serving the black community as a career law enforcement official, I have had a front row seat from which to view this urban decay,” he added.

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Clarke said that opposing school choice deprives young people of life choices.

“School vouchers and charter schools are a critical initiative in improving urban education systems,” he argued. “It’s a winning policy. School choice has had a positive impact on student performance, which translates to educational and professional success.

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“By allowing schools to compete for students, teachers and curriculum improve, parents are empowered, and students are given a chance to succeed,” Clarke explained. “It helps break the cycle of poverty and get people off of welfare.”

“With a proven record of success, school choice is exactly what black communities need. Sadly this isn’t even a part of the CBC platform,” he wrote.

DeVos has said school choice is not about gaining control, but giving it back to parents and communities so they have options to tailor schools to community needs.

“Education is not a binary choice,” she said earlier this year. “Being for equal access and opportunity — being for choice — is not being against anything.”

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She emphasized the stakes that can be obscured by abstraction: “It’s important for all of us to remember that we’re not just talking about abstract theory or some wild social experiment here. This is about putting people — putting parents and students — above policies and politics.”

DeVos said choice should be “translated as giving every parent in this great land more control, more of a say in their child’s future. More choices. The future of choice lies in trusting and empowering parents — all parents, not just those who have the power, prestige, or financial wherewithal to make choices.”

Clarke said the CBC cannot imagine a world with parents in charge instead of government.

“There’s a reason why Democratic politicians are against it: they recoil at the thought of empowering parents or anybody else. Empowered individuals do not need big government or its supporters,” he said.

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Clarke noted that when all else fails, cries of racism are used instead of logical arguments.

“With school choice advocates President Donald Trump and Secretary of Education Betsy DeVos on board, now is the time to ensure better education for black communities. Unfortunately, the CBC and Democrats continue to push back against such reforms. In fact, they’ve manipulated the issue by labeling school choice advocates as racist,” he wrote.

“But the question remains: by preventing school choice — a policy that directly benefits black communities — are Democrats and liberal members of the Congressional Black Caucus really trying to help black communities?” he wrote.

Clarke said that voters can end the game played by the CBC.

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“Come election time, the black community needs to send a message to the CBC that they won’t be exploited any longer. President Trump successfully appealed to black voters in the 2016 election, with an increased number of black Americans voting for him while others helped him win by staying home. Hopefully that pattern continues in the 2018 mid-terms,” he wrote.